I secretly sold grain at age 60

Chapter 8 My Annoying Cousin

Gao Huai-ren followed closely behind Gao Huai-yi, showing no intention of leaving. No matter how fast or slow Gao Huai-yi walked, he stayed close by, constantly uttering polite and flattering words, but his eyes were always fixed on the thing wrapped in wild grass in Gao Huai-yi's hand, filled with curiosity and greed, wishing he could immediately lift the grass to see what it was.

They walked in silence, one after the other, into the Gao family courtyard.

As soon as he entered, Gao Huai-ren eagerly rushed forward, his eyes fixed on the clump of weeds. Before Gao Huai-yi could stop him, he reached out and parted the dry grass. Seeing a plump, intact wild rabbit wrapped inside, his eyes instantly lit up, his face filled with undisguised excitement and surprise, and he seemed much more energetic.

"Wow! Huaiyi, you're something else! You actually caught a wild rabbit in the mountains? It's so big, looks fat, we're in for a treat tonight!"

He kept praising and flattering Gao Huaiyi, uttering one nice word after another, desperately trying to please him. He praised his good luck and his competence, choosing words that would please everyone. But no matter how nice his words were, he wouldn't lift a finger.

The Gao family kitchen was deserted. No one had started cooking yet; firewood was piled next to the water vat, and the pot was empty. Gao Huaiyi turned to prepare the wild rabbit, boil water, and start the fire, busying himself with the chores of dinner. Gao Huairen, on the other hand, stood there watching the whole time, refusing to help boil water, start the fire, wash anything, or chop firewood—showing absolutely no intention of helping.

He waited for the food to be served without a care in the world, looking like he was just waiting to eat and drink for free, his skin thick with shamelessness. Gao Huaiyi saw this and became increasingly annoyed. He had long seen through his cousin's lazy, selfish and greedy nature, and he was too lazy to ask him to do anything. He just took care of processing the prey himself.

Not long after, a flurry of footsteps and voices came from outside the courtyard. Gao Huaiyi's parents, along with his older sister, younger sister, and youngest brother, all returned from the fields carrying farm tools and bamboo baskets. The family was exhausted after a long day's work, their faces etched with the weariness of labor in the fields.

Upon seeing his elders return, Gao Huai-ren immediately put on an exceptionally obedient and sensible demeanor, quickly stepping forward with a fake yet enthusiastic smile on his face. He addressed them affectionately as "Second Uncle" and "Second Aunt," his words so sweet they were almost unbelievable, each sentence a pretentious and polite greeting.

He asked if I was tired, and inquired about the harvest in the fields, speaking a set of polite words without any flaws.

Gao's parents knew perfectly well that Gao Huai-ren had been idle and lazy since childhood, and was usually shrewd and selfish. He would never come to their house without a reason, and today, he had come home with their son for no apparent reason, clearly just to freeload. However, out of consideration for his elder brother, and because they were all family and relatives who would see each other often, the elders couldn't very well turn their backs on him and kick him out on the spot. They could only feel displeased in their hearts, and not say a word on the surface, so they could only politely respond to him a few times.

The family tidied up briefly, washed their hands and feet, and gathered around the old wooden table to prepare dinner.

Soon, the fragrant stewed rabbit meat was served on the table by my mother. A pot of steaming broth filled the entire house with its aroma. In those days, oil and salt were scarce, and we often went half a year without tasting any meat. As soon as the rich aroma of meat wafted out, the whole family couldn't help but swallow their saliva, and their eyes were all fixed on the rabbit meat.

The dishes had just been served, and before anyone had even touched their chopsticks, not even the hosts, Gao Huai-ren, showing absolutely no manners and acting as if he were one of them, picked up his chopsticks and started eating.

He moved swiftly and without hesitation, grabbing the largest and most intact rabbit hind leg from the pot and shoving it into his bowl, as if afraid someone else would snatch it away if he was a step too slow. He then buried his head in the rabbit meat and began to gnaw on it greedily, wolfing it down until his mouth was greasy, his manner both crude and unsightly.

Throughout the entire process, he didn't ask the elders or the children, only caring about enjoying the best and biggest piece of meat for himself.

Looking at his greedy, selfish, and ill-mannered rogue, the family couldn't help but secretly roll their eyes. They were both angry and speechless, but out of consideration for their kinship, they couldn't openly criticize him.

The youngest brother, sitting to the side, watched helplessly as Gao Huai-ren snatched away the biggest and best rabbit leg, leaving him without a single bite. Feeling wronged and sad, his eyes welled up with tears, and he couldn't help but cry. While wiping away his tears, he cried out that he wanted to eat rabbit legs and meat too.

The mother looked at her children with heartache and sighed helplessly. She could only carefully put the last small piece of rabbit leg left in the pot into her youngest son's bowl and gently comfort and coax her younger brother.

The atmosphere at the table became somewhat awkward for a moment. Everyone silently lowered their heads and ate, quietly enjoying this rare dinner with meat. Only Gao Huai-ren ate with great relish, focusing solely on his own eating and drinking, oblivious to everyone else.

After a leisurely dinner, Gao Huai-ren had devoured almost half of the rabbit meat on the table. As soon as everyone put down their chopsticks, Gao Huai-ren, still restless, shamelessly spoke up again, his expression matter-of-fact: "Second Uncle, Second Aunt, Huai-yi, this meat soup smells so good! Don't waste a drop of the oil. We haven't cooked anything at home tonight, so we have nothing to eat. Why don't I just take the leftover soup home and heat it up to satisfy my craving?"

Upon hearing this, Gao Huaiyi's face instantly turned cold.

This person arrived empty-handed from beginning to end, without bringing a single grain of food or anything. He refused to help with any chores, ate and drank a large meal for free, and even tried to pack up the remaining broth to take away after finishing. His greed was boundless.

Gao Huaiyi immediately spoke up, his tone clearly showing dissatisfaction, and coldly retorted: "You followed us all the way here, didn't light a fire or help when you came in, didn't exert any effort, didn't bring a single thing, and came here with nothing but your mouth to eat. Now that you've eaten and drunk your fill, you still have the nerve to covet the meat soup we left? There's no such thing as a free lunch."

Gao Huai-ren was publicly and bluntly rejected, which made his face burn. He immediately lost face and reluctantly stopped mentioning taking the soup away. He shut his mouth and stopped arguing.

But he remained unashamed, slowly picking at the bits of meat left in his teeth with his fingers, savoring the taste with a look of enjoyment, clicking his tongue incessantly: "Meat is still the best! How can coarse grains and wild vegetables every day compare to a bite of wild game?"

After expressing his feelings, he turned to Gao Huaiyi beside him and asked tentatively, "Huaiyi, are you going to the back mountain again tomorrow? If you are, take me with you. If we go into the mountains together, we might be able to catch some wild animals."

Gao Huaiyi couldn't be bothered with such a greedy and lazy person, not even bothering to glance at him. He coldly retorted, "All you ever think about is eating and taking advantage of others, being lazy and unwilling to put in any effort. Besides opening your mouth to eat, what useful things can you do?"

One harsh word left Gao Huai-ren speechless, his face turning pale and then red. He was instantly filled with anger and resentment, and felt a surge of irritation. However, he was still thinking about the possibility of getting something for free in the future, so he couldn't afford to completely break off the argument on the spot. He could only suppress his anger and remain silent.

After lingering awkwardly in the courtyard for a while, seeing that there was really nothing to gain, Gao Huai-ren reluctantly turned around and left the Gao family, slowly walking towards his own home.

Walking along the country road on his way back, the ingratiating smile on his face vanished completely, and he couldn't help but mutter curses under his breath, filled with resentment:

"What's so great about it? It's just that I got lucky and happened to catch a wild rabbit. What's there to be proud of? What makes me so special? I'll go into the mountains tomorrow and catch some game too. Next time I catch something, let's see if you still give me that attitude." He muttered to himself as he walked home.

Gao Huai-ren muttered to himself as he returned to his house. As soon as he entered, he couldn't wait to boast to his family that he had eaten delicious wild rabbit meat at his second uncle's house that night, and that the meat was succulent and flavorful, a rare treat.

He even made a point of mentioning that Gao Huaiyi had only gotten lucky by going into the mountains alone today and had managed to catch a plump wild rabbit, which led to this meaty dinner.

The family was filled with envy upon hearing this. In those days, food was scarce; every meal consisted of coarse grains and wild vegetables. Rabbit meat was a rare treat, and even a little oil was hard to come by. They never imagined Gao Huaiyi would be so lucky, managing to find wild game in the mountains to satisfy his cravings and eat meat every night.

The family members were filled with envy and jealousy, and they kept gossiping about it. However, all they heard from Gao Huai-ren was that Gao Huai-yi was lucky, and they envied Gao Huai-ren for being able to eat meat. Hearing his family's envious words, Gao Huai-ren felt a little better and became even more determined to go up the mountain to try his luck the next day. He was determined not to let Gao Huai-yi enjoy all the benefits alone again.